Vietnam’s first-ever professional basketball team, the Saigon Heat, named assistant coach Anthony Garbelotto as coach on Thursday to replace head coach Jason Rabedeaux, who passed away earlier this week, the club said in a statement.

Garbelotto will take the wheel and lead the team through the last seven games of the ongoing 2014 ASEAN Basketball League, according to the document.

“Coach Anthony is going to lead the team through these tough times and finish the dream of developing Vietnam basketball that coach Jason has been chasing,” the team said.

American-born Jason Rabedeaux died at the age of 49 on Monday en route to FV Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 7, after he was found lying unconscious at his home at 6:20 am the same day, according to family members.

The Saigon Heat did not elaborate on the cause of death in an email query from Tuoi Tre News. The team said its coach “died from an unfortunate accident at his private home.”

The details of his funeral are also being kept private, as per family request, according to the basketball club.

The team did disclose that the coach would be buried in the U.S.

No members of the team will be able to accompany their former boss back to his homeland, as they are busy competing in the 2014 Asian Basketball League, the club spokesperson said in an email.

“The team will try their best to advance into the play-off round to fulfill the ambition and dream of late coach Rabedeaux,” the email reads.

The 49-year-old started coaching the Saigon Heat in 2012. He had 20 years of experience working in professional basketball in the U.S., China, Japan, and Bahrain.

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